# Balkan Sobranie



## SeanGAR (Jul 9, 2004)

I used to smoke the Balkan Sobranie ciarettes in the early 80s and tried the pipe tobacco back then as well. It appears that this stuff changed formulation in the 1980s then finally has been gone for 10 years or so. Of the blends that are designed to reproduce the taste of the early Sobranie, which come closest? I see Balkan sasieni and a bunch of other tobaccos that supposedly taste the same. Anything close?


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## croatan (Mar 23, 2005)

I've only ever had the real stuff once and haven't found anything exactly like it that's in production. This is a huge topic over on pipes.org--I'm not sure what the consensus is over there, as I haven't checked in a while. 

GL Pease makes some awesome Balkans, a couple of which are fairly close in flavor to some of the old Sobranie lines. I like the Pease blends far better than the Sasieni.


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## rumballs (Mar 15, 2005)

My uncle is very into pipes. He used to love Balkan Sobranie and has apparently spent years and years searching for something like it. He says there's nothing quite like it, but his favorite these days is Schurch Sodolit... Anyone had that?


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## SeanGAR (Jul 9, 2004)

mmblz said:


> My uncle is very into pipes. He used to love Balkan Sobranie and has apparently spent years and years searching for something like it. He says there's nothing quite like it, but his favorite these days is Schurch Sodolit... Anyone had that?


Sodalit. People have reported this site is good for ordering Schurch tobaccos. I haven't had any of them nor ordered from those guys.

http://www.pipesandtobaccos.com/pata/taba/index.htm


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## rumballs (Mar 15, 2005)

SeanGAR said:


> Sodalit. People have reported this site is good for ordering Schurch tobaccos. I haven't had any of them nor ordered from those guys.
> 
> http://www.pipesandtobaccos.com/pata/taba/index.htm


Yup, that's where my uncle gets it...


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## madurofan (Sep 8, 2005)

PM sent


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## smokegetsinyoureyes (Jan 27, 2005)

The Balkan Sasieni is very close, but no cigar. I still have some Balkan Sobranie bought 3 years ago in England. Last time over it was not to be found.


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## pyrotech (Sep 8, 2005)

Bl**dy ,hell I followed the link above out of curisosity. Selected a pipe at random . I don't think I'll start out with a Baldo Baldi, whoooo. Where do I line up for a corn cob.


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## Nooner (Feb 22, 2005)

Late 60's early 70's Balkan Sobranie

http://www.vintagepipetobaccoshop.c...d/213?osCsid=3107b726ee7678e2afec20f551d83fe2

$600 for a 7oz poptop!!!


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## SeanGAR (Jul 9, 2004)

Nooner said:


> Late 60's early 70's Balkan Sobranie
> 
> $600 for a 7oz poptop!!!


How many grams in an average bowl? 5g in a Savinelli Goliath .. so say 3g in a middlin' bowl. Works out to about 8 bucks a bowl. The price is insane compared to good pipe tobacco you can buy today, but how much would cigars from the '60s cost a pop? Per hour of smoke ... that tobacco is probably a pretty good deal COMPARED TO CIGARS OF THE SAME AGE. I ain't buying it .... thats for sure.


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## Nooner (Feb 22, 2005)

same folks have a 50g pouch of 80's-90's too - $25... I am tempted to pick it up just to see what the fuss is all about, but I've heard that sometime in the late 80's the blend changed?

Is that so?


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## SeanGAR (Jul 9, 2004)

Nooner said:


> same folks have a 50g pouch of 80's-90's too - $25... I am tempted to pick it up just to see what the fuss is all about, but I've heard that sometime in the late 80's the blend changed?
> 
> Is that so?


Yes, the 90s pouch is the altered blend that people say is not as good. In the early 80s Gallaher bought Sobranie from the Redman family and changed the blend. They supposedly stopped making it altogether in 95.

The cigarettes were the best I have ever smoked. I remember them fondly from the very early 80s when I moved to Halifax. I started with Sobranie's Black Russians cigarettes, which were not as good as the tinned Balkan Sobranie cigarettes, which let off a distinctive offensive aroma and tasted great.

I read that Bengal Slices was a flake version of Balkan Sobranie. There were at least three different versions of that tobacco.

http://www.pipes.org/discus/messages/24/1278.html?1021280361


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## IHT (Dec 27, 2003)

check out this LINK, Sean!!


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## croatan (Mar 23, 2005)

IHT said:


> check out this LINK, Sean!!


 Wow. I'm going to refrain from bidding on this and let Sean have it.


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## SeanGAR (Jul 9, 2004)

Wow ... a 50g tin of Bengal flake just sold for 40-something dollars, but it appeared to be from the 80s. The BS 759 is over $230 right now with 2 days left ....pretty impressive for 50g of tobacco. I remember the tins looking more like this one... which were graphically similar to the cigarettes. Really dunno the difference between 759 and original mixture.










Don't worry boys ... I have been smoking Pennzance and really like that one, I won't bid on 50g Sobranie what will buy many pounds of tobacco that I like.


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## IHT (Dec 27, 2003)

check this'n out.
http://cgi.ebay.com/Full-Balkan-Sob...6222817141QQcategoryZ4119QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem


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## DrStrangelove (Jun 8, 2005)

> (Please note: the value of this tin is in the collectible packaging, not the tobacco sealed within and not for consumption. The tin at auction is not available at retail outlets. Bidders must be at least 18 years of age.)


thats just to appease ebay right?


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## SeanGAR (Jul 9, 2004)

DrStrangelove said:


> thats just to appease ebay right?


Yes.


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